Finally!

Deborah
My Irish eyes are smiling. No, not over green beer. There is action going on in my backyard. The earth is finally stirring up some fresh shoots.

The crocus are up!

Forsythia buds

Chives! I can start harvesting them now.

An oregano that I planted in the fall.

In honor of St. Patrick's day I made a fair amount of corned beef for my clients this week. The dish that got me excited, however, was a red cabbage braised with shredded apple.

Red cabbage has such dramatic color.

I let the cabbage cook down till it is really caramelized and adjust the seasoning to get a deep sweet-tart flavor. A handful of nuts at the end of cooking will add some crunch and a little protein.

The cabbage will be brightly colored when it first goes in the pan but as you cook it down the color will get deeper and darker. Make sure to cook it till the color is a dark, dark burgundy. My camera ran out of batteries before I could take the photo.


This cabbage dish is really tasty and not CABBAGEY at all. Meaning that it should appeal to most. The dark rich sweetness gets a nice counterpoint from the tart apple. I wish I could show you the picture. I added pistachio nuts at the end and the light green color of the nuts made a very festive presentation.

Amanda is there any wine to celebrate an Irish holiday?

Braised Red Cabbage and Green Apple
3 Tbs. olive oil
1 onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 head of cabbage, shredded or finely sliced
1 green apple, shredded
1/2 cup apple juice
1/2 cup chopped nuts (almonds, pecans, cashews, pistachios)
s & p to taste
Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion and garlic and cook till golden and tender. Add the cabbage and the apple and cook, stirring frequently for 15 minutes on medium to low heat, being sure not to let the cabbage burn and stick to the bottom of the pan. The cabbage should begin to be tender and start to dry out, at which point add the apple juice and stir. Allow the juice to simmer down into the cabbage for about 5 minutes. Cover the cabbage and cook another 10 minutes till the cabbage has browned and caramelized. Add the chopped nuts and serve.